Board Votes to Repost Ten Commandments - Again

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The up-again, down-again battle over the Ten Commandments in southwest Virginia continues.

The Giles County School Board voted Tuesday to once again to post copies of the Ten Commandments in its schools. Giles County School Board members voted 3-2 to place the
Biblical texts in schools as part of displays that include several other historical documents. It's unclear when they will be reposted.

Board member Drema McMahon told the Bluefield Daily Telegraph that the controversy brought the commandments “back to life” in Giles County. She told the paper that at least 40 Giles County students had posted copies of the Ten Commandments on their lockers in light of the controversy.

“This battle, as you have referred to it, has been won,” McMahon told the Daily Telegraph.

ACLU legal director Kent Willis said Tuesday that based on his understanding of the decision, reposting the documents would violate the Constitution's separation of church and state. He said
the ACLU plans to move forward with plans to litigate.

The commandments had been displayed for at least a decade next to framed copies of the U.S. Constitution.

They came down in December on the advice of the board's attorney. They were reposted in January, but removed again in February.